With Pride and Compassion
by No-Shiloh-El
Summary: When something bad happens to Gisela Wolfram is the first to show compassion. Because of that Gisela becomes inseparable from Wolfram, Yuuri is torn between being grateful and being jealous and Murata is curious how things will further unfold. Warning! mentioning of rape, child abuse and other traumatic experiences.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

"Damnit! What in Shinous name am I supposed to do?! And where am I supposed to be?!", Wolfram grumbled as he ran through the castle halls and hallways.

 _Something was awfully wrong._ Wolfram couldn't put his finger on what it was but his instincts or whatever told him that something was happening that shouldn't happen at all. Every cell of his body screamed for him to _move, move move_. Someone had to be in danger and he either needed to rescue or protect him or her. It had to be someone that Wolfram knew well enough (of that he was sure) or he certainly wouldn't feel that way. But where he was needed remained a mystery still.

"Damnit!"

Wolfram paused in his running to catch his breath and _think_. Where had he checked already?

First he'd checked on Yuuri, who he found at Gwendals office with Gwendal and Gunter. They were safe. Second, he met Anissina and Greta on their way to the kitchen to get some cookies. They were also safe. Third, he knew that Conrad was meeting up with Josak. They had to be safe as well. His mother was once again on a love cruise, even if she was in danger he couldn't do anything. Hell, Wolfram didn't even know where she went this time. Also the Great sage and the priestesses were obviously safe at Shinous castle. No need to check there. Same thing with the maids, guards, the soldiers and any other staff member of the castle. He wasn't even close to those people.

And then it finally dawned on him.

" _Gisela_.", he breathed out.

 _Why_ hadn't he thought of her at all? Obviously because she's a healer and Gunter always made sure that she was guarded from any kind of harm.

Wolfram could only hope he got to Gisela on time and none of the worst case scenarios playing in his mind came true by the time he arrived at the healing quarters.

* * *

 _How could she be so stupid?!_ Why had she let herself be alone with a man who clearly lusted after her since the day she met him as her new appointed guard. He had caught her off guard, his body weight rendered her immobile on the hard infirmary floor, one hand pinned her hands above her head and the piece of fabric stuffed into her mouth prevented her from screaming for help. Gisela couldn't do a thing to save herself and the more she squirmed under his groping the more aggressive he got.

"Ya want this don't ya woman? Ya've been looking at me the whole day. Playing hard to get, but I know what the likes of ya do. Ya little medic girlies are doing it with every man ya get into the infirmary don't ya? Oh I bet ya lot are screwing each other as well.", he panted into her ear, the fingers of his free hand digging painfully into the skin of her breast.

Nobody would come to save her from this. After all she was supposed to be safe and protected from things like that right now. Why else would she need a guard?

She felt so used. So dirty. So filthy. He had ripped the font of her dress in his eagerness to touch her skin. His arousal scraped against her womanhood as he rutted against her, his dick getting harder by every move.

"I bet ya did it even with ya father ya little bitch. Why else would a nobleman adopt ya.", he grunted, moving his hand from her breast between her legs. And then his hard-on poked against her hole, tearing her insides apart as he thrusted into her.

 _It_ _hurts_. Everything hurts and she just wanted it all to stop. It was all so painful.

She could feel herself close to crying. Tears were forming, clouding her eyes but Gisela willed herself not to let them fall. When all this was over she would allow herself to bawl her eyes out. But not now. She closed her eyes to keep her tears at bay. He already destroyed her body. She wouldn't let him destroy her mind and take her sanity. If she could just _pretend_ …if she could just image something else in her head she could survive though this.

 _Please let this be over soon._

"Gisela!"

 _Wolfram? But how?_

"Get off of her you disgusting piece of trash!", she could hear Wolfram growl. The man stopped shocked and let go off her instantly, his body leaving her completely. Only to turn around to face Wolfram with a scowl.

"Ya brat! How dare ya!", the guard screamed and lunged at the blonde.

Gisela blinked. It all happened so fast.

Within seconds everything changed. Shifted. Wolfram was suddenly next to her, gently pulling the piece of fabric out of her mouth.

"Gisela are you with me? Can you hear me? I'm sorry I wasn't fast enough. But I'm here now. He can't hurt you anymore now and he won't hurt you ever again. It's over now."

Wolframs voice was a comforting sound in her ears. His hands on her shoulders were warm, slender, soft and gentle as he pulled her into a sitting position, so unlike the calloused, rough meaty paws of her rapist. And she was glad that Wolfram was so much different from that guard.

She could see the other man, _her rapist_ , lying across the room in a faraway corner. Unconscious. Bleeding. Nude and with remaining bits of torched clothes and at least first-degree burns.

"I would have loved to kill him for what he did to you. But it's your right alone to decide his fate."

Healing magic spread from Wolframs warm palms over her body, curing her of any physical pain. His steady, calm, caring voice was like a lifeline, reassuring her mind that the abuse was over. Finally.

Gisela could only stare at the supposedly selfish Little Lord Brat, the young man who only ever publicly cared for his majesty Yuuri and little Greta. The Fire Mazoku was here with her, when he could be with either or both of _them_. He had come for her rescue like the charming, knightly prince she used to dream about as a young girl and defied her abuser, this monster of a man.

And now she found comfort in his presence, felt safe and sheltered from any harm in the world.

 _How did he know she was in danger?_

"Oh Shinou, I'm so sorry.", Wolfram mumbled, blushing, eyes diverting from her, hands leaving her shoulders.

Gisela blinked once again and watched him pull his jacket off, only for him to throw it over the front of her body to cover the nudeness of her most private body parts. When it finally dawned on her it was her turn to be embarrassed and she hastily pulled herself into a human ball, legs tucked under her butt, arms holding his jacket close to her front.

His blue uniform jacket was as warm as the blond himself. The fabric smelled like musk, sweat and subtle flowery scented much like his namesake growing in the gardens. And although the jacket didn't manage to cover much on itself, it still felt like a safety blanket.

 _Wolfram was so sweet to her. So different from his usual self._

She looked into his eyes, fearing to find pity and disgust in those emerald orbs. But there was none of that. There was no pity, no disgust and certainly no malicious joy in his eyes, just serious concern and true compassion towards her. And as the eyes are windows to the soul Gisela instantly knew that Wolfram truly, sincerely cared for her and her wellbeing.

The walls in her broke. And she sobbed. Cried. Wailed. Grieved. And cursed the swine of a man that did this unforgivable thing to her in every foul word she could think of.

Wolfram stayed with her through every bit off her breakdown.

* * *

"Will you be okay if I leave you for a moment? I'll go get your father and tell the maids to bring you something to wear and to draw a bath for you."

Gisela nodded, he guessed that she temporarily lost her voice with all her crying and screaming.

Wolfram bit his lip as he stood up from his kneeling position next to the green haired woman. He was unsure if he should really leave her alone after what just happened to her. He knew all too well how Gisela was feeling right now. He had gone through the exact same thing at a point in his life many years in the past. He was just a child back then, abused by his own father. Back then he was forced into intercourse too many times to count on his fingers alone. And whenever his mother showed him off to her guests, he could practically count on being assaulted in some way.

Only his uncle Waltrana knew of this, his darkest secret. He had never told his brothers. Especially not his mother. It was better to let them think of him as a brat rather than pitying him for being misused in his childhood. It's in the past now anyway.

Eventually Wolfram left Gisela alone, but only after he called for guards to take the unconscious assaulter to the dungeons. He also called for the maids to get a hot bath ready for Gisela and deliver some clothes to the poor girl. Wolfram also left his sword with Gisela, for her comfort and for her protection.

And then with fast strides Wolfram made his way to Gwendals office. He actually reached the chamber rather quickly. There he took a moment to catch his breath and then Wolfram slammed the doors open. Instantly he had the full attention of the three men in the office.

"Gunther your daughter needs you immediately. Please accompany me on the way to her without further delay.", Wolfram announced in as much seriousness and authority, that even made Gwendal look harmless.

Wolfram ignored the shocked faces of Gwendal, Yuuri and Gunter that his sudden entrance has caused. He needed to get back to Gisela before she harmed herself. Like he had done so many times in the past. His healing magic had helped him to cover his doings. And Gisela was way better at healing wounds and scars than he was. So he turned immediately and half-run half-walked back to where he had found Gisela.

He could hear Gunther stumbling after him without questions –probably too worried about his daughter to argue. Gwendal and Yuuri had to follow close behind Gunter if Wolfram guessed the amount and the sound of footsteps right.

 _Oh well whatever. He can't keep Yuuri away from this even if he tried._

* * *

The moment Wolfram left her alone, Gisela wasn't alone for long. Two maids soon entered the chambers with arms full of new clothes. Gisela couldn't help but feel ashamed for her appearance although the two maids said nothing, nor did they look at Gisela. They only helped her change and soon left with the torn clothes, mumbling about preparing the requested bath. The same went for the guards, who came to take her assaulter to the dungeons.

Now dressed once again and with the bastard out of her sight, Gisela felt a bit safer. Wolfram's sword helped in grounding her as well. So Gisela waited for Wolfram to return with her father. In a spur of the moment Gisela slipped into Wolframs jacket, which made her feel a bit more protected than the new clothes. And then she paced the chambers, too wind up to sit still, holding Wolframs sword close to her body.

 _Things will be okay. She'll be okay. Her father will make sure of it. Wolfram will make sure of it. She's not alone. She's safe. She's protected. He'll never hurt her again._


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

Something really bad had to have happened for Wolfram to act the way he did, Yuuri was sure of it.

His fiancé was unusually quiet, the blondes gait determined, on their fast walk to the healing quarters.

"What happened Wolfram?", Yuuri finally asked, unable to keep his silence any longer.

"Without Gisela present I would prefer not to talk about it.", was all Wolfram said to the matter.

Yuuri sighed quietly to himself. Whatever got Wolfram agitated, made Yuuri nervous as well. It wasn't right to see Wolfram like that. It made Yuuri worried about his blond fiancé, adding to his feeling of concern towards Gisela.

As Wolfram and his entourage of three reached the healing quarters, Wolfram knocked on the doors.

"Gisela can I come in? I brought Gunter with me just like I said. Yuuri and Gwendal are with me, too."

"Yeah, you can come in.", Gisela's voice was a mix of hesitation and relief. And so Wolfram opened the doors, only to be tackled into an embrace by Gisela, who had been pacing in front said doors.

"I'm glad you're back, Wolfram." It was only a whisper from Gisela to the blonde, but Yuuri heard it nonetheless. Yuuri didn't know what to feel about this situation. On one hand Gisela would never hug Wolfram on her free will, on the other Wolfram would never let Gisela embrace him like that.

And the black haired man had the sudden urge to pull his fiancé away from the green haired healer but he refrained from doing so.

 _Yuuri had to wonder about what happened that made those two act so out of character._

"Gisela? What happened? Are you alright?", Gunter asked his daughter, clearly concerned about her wellbeing and just as confused as Yuuri felt.

"Papa….", was all Gisela could say, before tears formed in her and she let go of Wolfram, only to latch onto her father like a little child seeking comfort from their parent. Gunter put his arms around his trembling child and shushed her gently, before he told her:

"I'm here Gisela dearest. It's okay. Everything is going to be alright."

Yuuri's gaze was torn between the father-daughter pair and Wolfram.

"Wolfram, Yuuri. Let's leave them alone for a bit." Gwendal finally said after his long silence.

"Right, Gwendal.", came the unison reply of Yuuri and Wolfram. And so the three made a move to leave the father-daughter pair alone. But neither had anticipated Gisela's reaction.

"No! Wolfram wait! Please don't go!"

Yuuri had to look away as Gisela let go of Gunter to once again embrace Wolfram. The black haired man didn't know why he felt annoyed whenever Gisela and Wolfram touched. But just looking at the two hugging made his skin crawl unpleasantly. _Who's a cheater now…._

Before Wolfram or any other of the 3 males could say anything to Gisela, the 5 of them were interrupted by one of the castle maids.

"Excuse my interruption my lords, my lady, but the bath is ready Lady Gisela."

* * *

Gisela was alone in the huge bathroom, sitting in a tube of very warm - almost burning hot – water, leaning against the tube's wall. She sighed. Her eyes were closed, her face turned to the ceiling. She had send away the maids, feeling uncomfortable around anyone right now.

Gisela had been scrubbing at her skin until everything was red and burning from pain.

She still felt dirty. She'd washed every part of her body that she could reach at least 10 times until she felt somewhat clean again and had rinsed it all off with hot water.

With a hearty sigh she got out of the tube. Heika, her father, Gwendal and Wolfram were waiting for her in Heika's office. She dreaded the moment of explaining what happened once she was out of the bathroom and in Heika's office. Just thinking about it made her want to cry again.

She took a towel and dabbed her oncoming tears away, before she towelled herself and changed into a new set of clothes. Then she grabbed Wolfram's blue jacket and hugged the clothing close to her body.

With her hair still wet, she made her way out of the bathroom only to find Wolfram standing guard right outside the room. Wolfram turned towards her just as she was about to call his name and looked at her with a gentle smile, much like Conrad would usually do.

"Ready?", was all he asked. Gisela heaved another sigh before she replied.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

Together they made their way towards Heika's office. And all the while Gisela still carried Wolfram's jacket with her, the blond didn't say a word about it nor requested it back.

* * *

Once they reached Yuuri's office, Wolfram stopped Gisela by putting his hand on her shoulder.

"You don't have to strain yourself Gisela. I can take over if you need me to."

Wolfram watched Gisela take a shaky breath before he heard her answer.

"Thanks but I can do this Wolfram. I have to do this myself for my own sake."

"Alright. But I'm there if you need me."

The air in Yuuri's office was thick with tension and walking into the office felt like walking into a wall. Wolfram walked in first, followed closely by Gisela. Upon their arrival Wolfram wasn't surprised to find Gunter and Gwendal in a heated discussion with Yuuri trying to settle their dispute.

He gently grabbed Gisela on the shoulders and led her forwards in front of Yuuri's table. Wolfram whispered a soft: "You can do this Gisela.", to the green haired healer. Then he let her go only to take his place at the doors in fear of unwelcomed listeners.

Gisela took a large breath before she loudly announced:

"Heika. Father. Lord von Voltair. I'm ready to explain what happened."

Which in turn ceased all bickering between the three people and brought the full attention towards the sole woman in the room.

And so Gisela started her report of what had happened to her as neutral and calm as possible, glancing at Wolfram once in a while for support. At the end of her report Gunter was in tears but didn't cry like he normally would, Gwendal had his hands fisted in anger and Yuuri was shell-shocked

 _Silence reigned for a long time. He had to wonder if all three males were suddenly broken and if Gisela was alright._

"If it's alright I would like to return to my chambers to rest?"; Gisela hesitantly asked into the silence.

"Oh of course Gisela darling! Right Heika?", Gunter replied, making his way towards his daughter.

"Right. You can leave now Gisela. Have a good rest."; Yuuri said distractedly.

"Heika and I will take care of your assaulter Gisela. You can rest assured.", Gwendal added, just as distracted as Yuuri was.

"I'll come with you Gisela.", Gunter gently took his daughter into a loose embrace before leading her towards the doors and to Wolfram. Wolfram instinctively made way for the father-daughter pair to pass him through the doors, when Gunter stopped in front of him to say:

"Thank you for saving my daughter Wolfram."

 _Well this is weird. Gunter never called him by his name before. Might as well repay the sentiments._

"There's no need to thank me Gunter. I wasn't there fast enough to prevent it from happening."

"I know. But without your intervention Wolfram, my daughter would not be alive right now. So thank you Wolfram."

And as they passed, Gisela still carried Wolframs jacket with her. But Wolfram once again didn't say anything to demand it back.

* * *

The rest of the day passed in relative normalcy. Soon it was evening, dinner had been served but neither Gisela, Gunter, Gwendal, Wolfram nor Yuuri were hungry. Which earned the 5 questioning stares from Conrad, Anissinna, Greta and Murata as well.

Once dinner had passed, Yuuri found himself in his bedroom, freshly bathed and laying on the bed which he shared with Wolfram. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't fall asleep.

The mattress of the king sized bed dipped a bit as Wolfram sat down on his side of the bed, dressed in a nightgown as usual.

"Can't sleep wimp?"

Yuuri fisted his blanket at that. _He's not a wimp…._

"No, I can't. I keep thinking about what happened to Gisela."

The black haired heard Wolfram sigh softly to himself before the blond said:

"I know it's not easy for you to understand. But things like that happen all the time."

"I do understand. It's just that I never imagined something like that happening in Blood Pledge Castle. Much less to Gisela of all people."

Yuuri watched Wolfram as the blond blew out the lit candles with his fire magic. With that task done, the Fire Mazoku lied down and turned to face Yuuri.

"I get what you mean. I too never thought of something like rape happening here. But it happened and now we must do everything to be there for Gisela and support her in any decision she makes."

Yuuri frowned, clenching and unclenching his hands, leaving crumples in the blanket.

 _Is that why Wolfram let Gisela carry his jacket with her?_

"Yeah but I don't know how to help her. I fear Gisela will kill herself if we do it wrong."

Wolfram stared at Yuuri for a long time, the blonds features unreadable, before he finally said:

"Nah, I don't thinks she will, Yuuri. Gisela is a strong woman. She'll pull though this disaster and come out stronger than ever."

"I guess…."

"Get some sleep wimp. Tomorrow will be a tiring day. You've to deal with Gisela's assaulter after all."

"I know…. Good night Wolf."

"Good night Yuuri."

The night went on, but Yuuri still couldn't sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

The next day didn't arrive soon enough for Gisela's taste. She just wanted to get this whole situation over with and be done with it. She just wanted to forget the awful thing that happened to her.

Gisela got up with a heavy sigh and got dressed reluctantly. Although she had returned it back to its owner before dinner yesterday, she wished she had Wolfram's jacket still with her. It had provided her a sort of comfort that she missed dearly now.

She wondered why Wolfram seemed to understand her pain and she wanted to talk to the blond again. Though she was kind of unsure of how to approach the Fire Mazoku.

 _Maybe if she tried to talk to him at his squad training it wouldn't be so suspicious._

A couple of knocks on her room's door interrupted her train of thoughts. Gisela kind of wished for it to be Wolfram, however it turned out to be her father.

"Gisela dear, ready to head for breakfast?"

"I'm ready."

* * *

To say Murata was curious was an understatement. It was in his nature as the Great Sage to know things. And when he didn't knew things it made him curious-er than a cat. It may get him killed one day, but whatever.

At the moment he was secretly watching Gisela sneaking glances at Wolfram at breakfast. Why the green haired woman would do this was a mystery to the bespectacled sage and he was eager to find out the reason.

Murata took a look at Yuuri to find the double-black king doing the same thing as Gisela. So the sage instead secretly watched Wolfram but the blond seemed to be deeply in thoughts.

 _My, oh my, what's going on?_

* * *

Training with his troop, after breakfast was done, was a nice way to let off some steam. Dealing with Gisela's situation was proofing to be harder than Wolfram originally thought. It wasn't easy to keep the mask of his Little Lord Brat personality on when he sympathized with the green haired woman.

Wolfram wondered how Gisela was doing, but he refrained from asking the healer directly. It would raise too much suspicion if he did. So it came as a surprise when one of the recruits at the back of his squad called for Wolfram's attention.

"Captain!?"

"What now?!"

"Lady Gisela is here asking for you!"

Wolfram blinked. And truly found the healer next to the calling recruit. He never imagined Gisela coming to him and so openly at that.

"I'm coming over!", he shouted back and started to jog over from his position at the front to the back, where Gisela was waiting for him.

"Gisela, what brings you here?", the blond asked Gisela once he reached her.

"I just wanted to talk to you Wolfram.", came the slightly confused reply of Gisela.

"Alright. Then let's go over there.", Wolfram nodded in acknowledgment and pointed to an area of secluded trees, a bit farther away from his training troop. It was far enough to talk without being overheard and close enough so Wolfram could keep an eye on his recruits.

"You guys keep on training! I want you to do 50 sit-ups next!", Wolfram commanded his troop, before he pulled Gisela along to the aforementioned location.

* * *

Dealing with Gisela's assaulter proofed to be a nightmare. Yuuri felt like banging his head against a wall thanks to the damn headache this whole ordeal was causing. Gwendal and he had decided to keep the matters as secret as possible but Yuuri ended up telling the gist of it to Conrad anyway. The double-black king couldn't keep secrets from his godfather even if he tried his hardest.

Currently Yuuri and Conrad were standing on front of the assaulter's cell, watching the man's charade. And Yuuri swore to himself that he would end up drowning the swine of a man if that bastard kept on talking like he did now:

"That girl deserved it. It's her own fault for being a pretty little thing." And so on and so on.

Yuuri clenched his hands into fists. _Oh he was so going to drown him._ He could feel his Maoh side awakening, the beginning of the transformation already tickling his skin. And suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned to Conrad in confusion.

"Heika calm down. Changing into the Maoh right now won't help us in this situation."

Yuuri took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"Right. And it's Yuuri to you Conrad. I think I need some air. Are you coming with me Conrad?"

"Sure."

* * *

Gisela wringed her hands in nervousness. Now that she was alone with Wolfram, she didn't know what she wanted to talk about with him.

"Are you alright Gisela?", Wolfram asked her softly.

"Yeah I'm fine as I can be. It's just that I…well I….", she trailed off. It was hard to find the right words when so many questions were running through her head.

"You want to know, how I was able to find you yesterday when no one could hear you. Right?"

Wolframs question caught her off guard, though she affirmed his inquiry nonetheless.

"Well… yeah."

Wolfram was silent for a long while and Gisela thought he would never explain, until the blond eventually spoke again:

"I don't know how to explain this. It's premonition of sorts. I can feel it when something disastrous is about to happen to the people I know. It's an ability I had since I was a little child."

"Oh.", was all Gisela could say to that. What else could she reply to something as serious as this. Wolfram certainly didn't sound like he was joking. So what he told her had to be the truth.

Wolfram's stare was intense and Gisela couldn't do anything but fidget.

"Is there anything else you want to know?"

Gisela looked away, unable to withstand the blonds stare for long.

"No…Yes...I mean...I don't know…"

Again there was silence between them. This time heavier than before.

"Gisela, look at me."

And Gisela complied, only to find Wolfram leaning close to her, studying her with his green eyes. Gisela felt like losing herself in those emerald green orbs, that's how close they suddenly were.

"You can tell me what else is bothering you. I won't make fun of you in any way.", she heard Wolfram say seriously as the blond put both hands her shoulders.

"Why are you so nice to me?!", Gisela blurted out, unable to keep the words from escaping her mouth. Once she realized what she said she covered her mouth ashamed and afraid she offended Wolfram. After all Wolfram was still Lord von Bielefeld and fiancé to the Demon King.

Wolfram just stared at her intently in silence as Gisela awaited his reaction with bated breath. Normally the blond would act out with temper. Screaming at anyone like a brat. But all he did was sigh heavily, take his hands of her shoulders only to put them into the pockets of his pants and move a bit away from her.

 _Why wasn't he on a temper tantrum right now? Why was he so calm and serious?_

Her silent questions were answered by Wolfram himself as the blonde calmly said:

"Because I know how you feel. I've went through the same thing. Too many times to count."

* * *

Murata smirked to himself as he was watching Gisela and Wolfram talk from afar. He didn't hear anything they were speaking of, but seeing them together was enough for now. He'll dig for the content of Gisela's and Wolfram's conversation later on.

 _Well this is interesting. Maybe he should talk to Yuuri about this._

The bespectacled sage nodded to himself to affirm his decision. And so Murata went to find his friend from earth. _How Yuuri will react to that, he wondered_.

* * *

Yuuri was outside with Conrad playing some catch and throw with a baseball ball, when Murata came walking towards them.

"Hey Murata. What are you doing here?", Yuuri called out to his approaching friend.

"Can't a friend see what his friend is doing Shibuya?", Murata retorted.

"Of course you can Murata.", Yuuri said in return, wondering what Murata would want from him.

Yuuri waited for Murata to explain himself, but the sage turned his attention to Conrad first.

"Sir Weller can you leave me alone with Shibuya for a bit?"

"Of course Geika.", Conrad nodded in agreement before he moved a bit further away, leaving Yuuri alone with his bespectacled friend.

Yuuri waited and waited. Only when Conrad was out of earshot did Murata start talking again:

"Guess who I found together, Shibuya."

"Who?", Yuuri asked in confusion. The double-back couldn't think of anyone Murata might be referring to.

"Your fiancé and our castle's healer."

"You mean Wolfram and Gisela? What happened? Is Wolfram injured?"

Yuuri was even more confused now and also worried about his blond best friend. He was about to walk into the castle and head towards the healing quarters, when Murata stopped him instantly before he could even start moving.

"Quite the contrary my friend. Wolfram is fine."

"Then what's going on? Is Gisela hurt?"

"No she's fine as well."

 _Okay. This was getting frustrating. What the hell does Murata want from him?_

"Quit playing your games and tell me what you want Murata!", Yuuri exclaimed.

Murata stared at Yuuri for such a long time then that Yuuri started to fidget.

"I saw them talking to each other.", Murata said as if it was the biggest scandal at the moment.

Yuuri felt like rolling his eyes at that. Talking wasn't a taboo now, was it?

"So what?"

"Wolfram even touched Gisela by the shoulders."

"So? Maybe Gisela stumbled and Wolfram caught her?"

Yuuri heard Murata let out a sigh and mutter something to himself. The double-black king crossed his arms at the front of his chest at that. _What was Murata talking about?_ Yuuri really didn't get it.

"You're naïve as always Shibuya. It seemed to me like your fiancé is cheating on you."

Yuuri blinked.

 _What did Wolfram talking to Gisela have anything to do with the blond cheating on him?_

"Wolfram would never cheat on me.", Yuuri stated with confidence, but he saw Murata raise an eyebrow at that.

"Are you sure? Then tell me why your fiancé is talking to Gisela. That's highly uncharacteristic of him, don't you think so Shibuya? And you haven't been a good fiancé to Wolfram lately. You've been engaged for how many years now? And still no marriage in sight. So maybe Wolfram is looking for somebody else to marry?"

"I don't believe you one bit Murata. Wolfram is probably only being nice to Gisela because of what happened to her."

Murata looked at Yuuri like the cat that finally got the cream.

"Oh? Really? What happened to Gisela?"

 _Well… shit._

"That's…well…It's not my place to tell Murata. Leave me and Wolf and Gisela out of your scheming!"

Murata was scheming something. Of that Yuuri was certain of. And if Yuuri got a bit loud exclaiming that then so be it.

"Heika, Geika is everything alright?", Yuuri heard Conrad shout from his place further away. The double-black must have been shouting a bit too loud for Conrad to hear him from that distance.

"Yes everything is fine. And it's Yuuri to you Conrad. Murata was just about to leave, right Murata?"

With that said, Yuuri turned to his friend for confirmation.

"Right. I'll let you continue your game for now. See you later."

Murata went on his way and Yuuri watched him go to wherever the sage was heading. However the words Murata said lingered with Yuuri throughout the rest of the day.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

It was deep in the night. And Wolfram couldn't sleep one bit. Yuuri instead was fast asleep, mumbling about Gwendal and paperwork in his slumber. Wolfram envied Yuuri that night.

In the end he had told Gisela everything about his awful childhood. After he'd dismissed his troop of course. And Gisela had listened with bated breath and tears in her eyes.

It was nice talking to someone else about his darkest memories other than his beloved uncle. But he never wanted anyone else to find out about his dark past. No one else was supposed to know of how many times people had violated him. No one else was supposed to know how many nightmares he had as a child because of the assaults. He still has nightmares occasionally. And now Gisela knew things even his mother or his brothers didn't know about. Wolfram hoped Gisela would never tell anyone else what he had told her.

The two of them had talked for a very long time. Even missing lunch and barely made it in time for dinner. It got them quite a lot of stares when they arrived at the dining hall together that evening.

Yuuri especially had been looking at Wolfram funny throughout the whole dinner and even after that. The blond still couldn't put a finger on the reason why his fiancé was staring at him so intently. They went through their bedtime routine without speaking much to each other. And now Wolfram wondered if he did something wrong for Yuuri to act as if he was sulking about something whenever the blond looked at his fiancé.

Wolfram's thoughts drifted back to Gisela. What would she do, now that she knew his depressing secrets? Would she take his memories as some sort of comfort? _Probably. Maybe. Hopefully._

And so Wolfram's thoughts wandered back to Yuuri and the double-black king's odd behaviour.

The fire Mazoku sighed to himself. _This was going to be a long, long night. Might as well go to his atelier to draw a bit._

With that Wolfram got up, got dressed and moved out of the room as silent as he could so he wouldn't wake Yuuri up. Then he headed for his atelier with a tiny self-made fire ball as his only light source, hoping some drawing would help him ease his thoughts.

* * *

Gisela had a lot to think about the whole day up until the middle of the night. Wolfram's past was so sad it made her want to cry in sympathy. Even though she knew now why the blond was so nice to her, part of her wished he never told her his past. The other part was glad she found someone that could relate to what was going on in her mind. Someone who got the feeling of being torn between facing the world to move on and the urge to hide under a rock so no one could touch you again.

There really was a lot going on in her mind right now. She finally understood why Wolfram acted so bratty and selfish. It was just a disguise to hide his pain. A sense of self protection. She felt like she understood the Fire Mazoku better now. Better than all the rest of the castle inhabitants. Maybe she and Wolfram could even be friends now. She hoped she could be friends with the blond.

 _Guess she will have to ask him to be her friend tomorrow_.

Wolfram was too self-cautious to either ask for or accept a close relationship from anyone but Heika, even if it was just friendship. That Gisela finally understood. So Gisela was a bit insecure if Wolfram would even want to be her friend.

 _Stop it. She wouldn't know until she tried now, would she?_

Gisela couldn't wait for tomorrow to come. She'll ask Wolfram first thing in the morning.

* * *

Yuuri woke up with a headache. He hadn't slept well last night. He'd thought about Wolfram and Gisela the whole day yesterday. Up until he fell into a pitiful sleep filled with nightmares of paperwork and an angry Gwendal.

"Good morning Wolf.", Yuuri said, however he got no answer in return.

He turned around to see if Wolfram was still asleep. But the blond was nowhere to be seen.

 _Where is Wolfram? It's not normal to find him gone so early. Did something happen?_

Yuuri instantly got up and got dressed. And as he was just about to leave the room, he came face to face with his fiancé.

Yuuri blinked. He never expected to find Wolfram looking like this. The blond was covered from head to torso in paint splashes. Yuuri shook his head to get out of the sudden daze at seeing his Wolf like that. The whole sight of his Wolf covered in paint made Yuuri chuckle a bit.

"What happened to you, Wolf?"

"Hmph! I couldn't sleep so I went to my atelier to draw. But I kind of got distracted and had a tiny accident. That is all."

And his fiancé's reaction to Yuuri's giggles just made Yuuri laugh a bit harder.

 _So he wasn't with Gisela. That is a relief. Wait what?_

* * *

Murata was awake as soon as dawn broke through the night. He got up early as well, slipping though the corridors of the temple in silent as not to awake the maidens, most of all Ulrike. Murata was in no mood to help in any of the temple tasks today. No, in fact he had better things to do today. And that was of course to dig into any information he could find out about what happened to Gisela and why she and Wolfram were closer now than before.

Once he reached the castle, he sneaked into a secret passage. There he decided to go to the maids first and ask around if one of them knew what happened. After that he would question the guards. And if he still had no answers he might end up cornering either Gisela or Wolfram to satisfy his curiosity. One way or another Murata was sure he'll get the information he's currently missing.

* * *

Wolfram leaned back into the tub of hot water with a sigh.

He'd totally lost his balance when he tried to remove his newest painting from the easel thanks to lack of sleep. Or his low blood pressure. Or his distracted mind. Or whatever. And because of this he had fallen onto his freshly drawn painting and not only destroyed the painting but also got paint all over him. Thankfully he still had some time to clean himself up before breakfast was ready.

Wolfram closed his eyes. Yuuri's laughter was still ringing in his ears. And while he loved to hear Yuuri laugh, Wolfram wasn't happy when it was at his expenses.

It reminded him of his past and how the people laughed at his misery and in turn made their sexual assaults even more painful. Of course they are people in the present who still laugh at him and lust after him, but he leaned long ago to endure it. In fact he counter attacks those now with verbal insults, temper tantrums or skills he didn't have in his childhood.

Another sigh, before the blond took a bottle of scented soap and started cleaning his skin and his hair of all the paint. Wolfram hummed a tune to himself as he washed away the stains, watching the colours bleed together into the water. It was always relaxing for Wolfram to see colours create new patterns. And he smiled softly to himself.

No one would know if he lingered a bit longer in the bath than necessary. He'll get out of the bath soon enough.

* * *

Gisela fidgeted a bit at the breakfast table. She was the first one to arrive.

Some time passed until the other castle residents joined her. Greta arrived with Anissina in tow. Gwendal came together with Conrad. Followed soon by Geika. And finally Heika arrived with her father following close behind. But no sight of Wolfram. And Gisela wondered where the blond was.

"Heika, where is Wolfram?", Gwendal asked, just as Gisela was about to voice her own concerns about Wolfram.

"Oh well Wolfram…he well… he'll be arriving soon. Don't worry.", Heika answered the question with a chuckle. Gisela sighed softly to herself. _So Wolfram didn't get into an accident or something._

Speaking of Wolfram and Wolfram shall appear. The blond arrived just a moment later, with partly wet hair and a scowl on his face and sat down at his usual place at the table.

"What happened to you Wolfram?", Conrad questioned his younger brother.

"Nothing. Let's eat breakfast.", Wolfram replied, the scowl still in place. The other people at the table just sighed, muttering to themselves about Wolfram being the Little Lord Brat as usual. But it seemed that only Gisela saw the smile tugging on Wolframs lips, which the blond was trying to hide with the scowl. Gisela heard a soft chuckle and turned to find Heika smiling at Wolfram. Something must have happened that only Wolfram and Heika know about.

Breakfast went by in and the castle inhabitants were leaving the table one after the other, leaving it to the maids to clean up. One by one the people went to wherever they had to go. In the end it was Wolfram, Gisela and Geika left at the table.

 _It's now or never._ Gisela took all of her courage together and as Wolfram was about to leave as well, Gisela stopped him by calling out:

"Wait Wolfram! Can I talk to you for a moment, please?"

Wolfram blinked and turned towards her.

"Sure. But please make it quick I have to go meet my troop."

She turned to look at Geika and if she glared at the double-black sage ever so slightly no one else but the sage would know.

"Don't mind me. I was just about to leave as well. I'll let you two be alone. ", the sage replied her unspoken request.

* * *

For the duration of the day Yuuri couldn't help but chuckle whenever he saw or thought of Wolfram. The double-black king couldn't get over the image of Wolfram covered in paint smudges. _It was just so damn cute. Wait what?_

"Heika, please refrain from slacking. There is a lot more paperwork that needs to be signed. "

"Yes, Gwendal."

Yuuri picked another letter of the stack of papers. Thanks to the paperwork Yuuri had to leave dealing Gisela's assaulter to Conrad for now.

"Gwendal, what are those?", Yuuri looked at the letter in his hand closer. Something was odd.

"Those are replies from the noble families to the ball which we had send invitations to out days ago."

"Oh. Alright. When is the ball happening?", a ball wasn't something Yuuri enjoyed much.

"Tonight.", came Gwendals cold reply. It took a moment for Yuuri to realize what that meant.

"Tonight?!", Yuuri exclaimed, panicking already.

* * *

Murata spent the time before and after breakfast flirting with the maids while fishing for information. But he got nothing so far.

Watching Gisela and Wolframs interaction after breakfast, when everyone was gone, proofed that the two shared some new found connection.

So Murata continued his advances with the maids until lunch time, when he finally found two maids that knew some of the juicy details.

Gratin and Soufflé or whatever their names were, were easily seduced into talking. Murata didn't even have to pull out his aces to win the two women over. And what Murata got out of their talk wasn't anything he imagined. At least not concerning Gisela, so called Sergeant of the healer squad.

Who would have thought sexual assault would happen in Blood Pledge Castle, safest place in Shin Makoku.

If he thought about it that had to have been the theme of Gisela and Wolframs little talk yesterday. And if he really considered Wolfram's beauty and the gentleness the blond displayed towards Gisela, chances where high that abuse had to have happened to Wolfram as well some way or another.

 _Well, if that isn't disturbing._


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

The evening of the ball was approaching soon. There were only few hours left to get everything ready for tonight's social gathering.

Wolfram was outside of the castle gates, waiting for the carriage of his uncle to arrive. It didn't take long for Waltrana's carriage to pull up before the gates. And soon Wolfram came face to face with his beloved uncle.

"Hello dearest Nephew.", Waltrana greeted him with a big embrace.

"Hello to you too Uncle.", Wolfram replied, returning the hug he received.

Waltrana held onto him a bit longer than necessary before the older blond loosened the hug.

"How are you doing Wolfram?"

Wolfram shrugged. _He was feeling alright._

"I'm doing fine Uncle."

Waltrana put his hands on Wolframs shoulders and stared right into the younger blonds eyes.

"I can see that. Let me rephrase my sentence beloved Nephew. How are you feeling Wolfram?"

"Really, Uncle, I'm fine."

Wolfram watched as Waltrana's face scrunched into a frown, but his uncle's eyes shown with determination.

"You know you can tell me anything and everything precious Nephew. If anyone even dares to touch one of your hairs or looks at you the wrong way I won't hesitate to hunt them down. You know that.", Waltrana said seriously.

"I know. I really am fine Uncle. Thank you for your concern. You know, no one dared to touch or look at me in _that_ way since my engagement with Yuuri. And I have no fear of anything bad happening to me again as long as you are there Uncle. I know that you'll do anything to protect me.", Wolfram exclaimed, trying to assure his overprotective uncle.

Waltrana let go of Wolframs shoulders and instead pulled Wolfram into another embrace.

"That is what I intend to do Wolfram. I made an oath to protect you the day you were born and I already broke it when I couldn't protect you from those men. I'll give everything to make it up to you.", Waltrana admitted, mumbling into Wolfram's blond locks.

"You already did, Uncle. You hunted those men down, punished and even killed most of them. They can't hurt me anymore thanks to you.", Wolfram whispered back, hoping to calm his uncle. It wasn't a good thing to have Waltrana fret over him when the ball was about to start. And it was certainly not a good thing to have Waltrana hover over him for the rest of the night.

"I wish I killed everyone that hurt you, my cherished nephew. But some escaped me, though suicide or outside help and I have yet not managed to hunt them down again. ", Waltrana confessed.

"It's alright Uncle. And you know what? I found a great friend in Lady Gisela von Christ. She know. About my past I mean.", Wolfram in turn admitted to his uncle.

"I see. Very well then. I'm glad you finally found a friend you can trust with this awful secret."

"Yes. I'm glad as well."

Wolfram was a bit glad when Waltrana released him from his hug. But the younger blond wasn't prepared for his uncle's next question.

"How is your engagement going with Heika? Any news about your marriage?"

"No. There hasn't been any development.", Wolfram conceded with a sigh.

"I see. Maybe I should go to Heika and talk some sense into him."

 _Hopefully he is joking._ Wolfram wasn't so sure if Waltrana was serious about that or not.

"I prefer if you don't do that Uncle."

"I was just kidding, lovely Nephew. Just kidding."

* * *

Murata inwardly growled in frustration. The man before him was so uncooperative that it made the black haired sage want to throttle the male. _Talking to him is hopeless._

Murata had come down to the dungeon of Blood Pledge Castle to get some kind of information out of Gisela's assaulter. But the guy said not one thing. _What kind of information was he even looking for?_

"Who in in Shinou's name are you? Human? Mazoku? A Half-blood? Why did you even choose to assault Gisela? What's your motive?"

The geika asked one question after the other. But no matter what he asked the douchebag of a male, the man remained silent. Almost as if there had been someone else at the man's cell before Murata, who had given the prisoner instructions to say nothing. Like there is a bigger picture to the assault of Gisela.

 _Like there was a mastermind behind the scenes._

* * *

Yuuri didn't know what to do. Even though he was ready for the ball, his mind was somewhere else. Greeting the guests one after another was done robotically while the black-haired male's head was once again filled with thoughts about his emerald-eyed fiancé.

He'd been thinking about Wolfram nonstop. Ever since the incident with Gisela's assaulter he saw Wolfram in a wholly different light. For some reason Yuuri got a nasty feeling whenever he saw Wolfram with anyone else, especially Gisela.

 _Like he was jealous or something._ _Like he suddenly had a crush on his best friend. But he liked girls not Wolfram. Or did he? He wasn't so sure anymore. He really need to ask Murata for advice._

"Good evening Heika. In the name of Bielefeld I thank you for the invitation to this ball."

"Good evening. Thank you for taking the invitation."

Yuuri droned out the same words he said since he started the whole greeting ritual. Not realizing he was talking to the uncle of the person occupying his thoughts. He wasn't even aware of the real Wolfram, who was standing slightly behind Waltrana. Not before Wolfram moved from behind Waltrana to stand next to Yuuri and said:

"That's not how you talk to your guests. Stop being a wimp and do it like the king you are."

"Wolfram!?", Yuuri practically squealed out, before he recognized the other blonde standing before him and he simply added: "Waltrana. Hello."

"Once again good evening Heika.", Waltrana greeted, although Yuuri didn't pay any attention to the older blonde man. Too caught up in Wolfram's presence.

"Wolf.", Yuuri whispered, but his fiancé heard him anyway. And so did Waltrana who observed the two younger males with a conflicting expression.

"What is it Yuuri?"

Once more Yuuri didn't know what to do and so he blurted out the first thing that came to his mind.

"Well…Have you seen Murata?"

"No. Why? Did something happen?", Wolfram asked, looking worried and thus Yuuri instantly tried to reassure his fiancé that nothing was wrong.

"No, no. Everything is alright. I just wanted to ask him for some advice that's all."

"If you say so. I can take a look around for Geika if you want."

"That would be great. Thanks Wolf."

Wolfram simply nodded and with a few whispered words to Waltrana, the younger blonde left Yuuri and the older man alone. Yuuri watched his fiancé walk away, not knowing that Waltrana was watching Yuuri watch Wolfram with a frown.

Yuuri meanwhile just kept staring after Wolfram. Once again with his thoughts somewhere else. But it didn't take long until Yuuri's attention was pulled back onto Waltrana, who simply cleared his throat loudly.

"Wolfram has been through a lot in his childhood. He's been through things no child should ever experience. It's a wonder my nephew is still sane, still brave and still compassionate. That's all I can tell you without Wolframs approval. And that is why I beg of you not to hurt Wolfram any further, Heika."

 _What does Waltrana mean by that? What terrible things happened to Wolfram in his childhood?_

"I promise I will never hurt Wolfram. He's my best friend and my fiancé."

"Then please let me ask you. When will you finally marry my nephew Heika? It's been years since the engagement. Currently the unknown is scaring and thus hurting Wolfram the most."

Yuuri was unsure of how to reply to that. It wasn't like he didn't want Wolfram to be with him for life. _But marriage was supposed to be just between a woman and a man right? It's all so confusing._

"I would do anything for Wolfram. Anything to protect my nephew. I would even fight you Heika if it meant protecting Wolfram from further harm.", Waltrana continued.

And Yuuri didn't know what to make out of that one. So he simply asked:

"Is that a threat?"

Waltrana looked at him for a moment before replying:

"No. Just a statement."

* * *

Murata frowned. Something wasn't right. Placing a hand on his chin while he observed the _rapist_ before him. The man was eerily calm. Like he was waiting for something to happen. It was eerily silent all of a sudden as well. Murata had spent a lot of time down in the dungeons. Usually there would be a guard patrolling the dungeon by now.

Murata couldn't even hear the guards at the entrance of the dungeon, which were usually very loud, busy playing cards. Since normally no one was held in the dungeon ever since Yuuri took over the throne. These guards were a precaution for situations like catching and interrogating assailants.

But no one else was there, just Murata and Gisela's assaulter. It all made Murata feel on edge. The black haired sage turned around to view his surroundings when a movement somewhere in the deeper part of the dungeon caught his eye. Murata instantly held his lantern so that the light shone to where he saw the shadow move.

And he instantly felt himself shiver when a humanlike figure stepped out of the darkness and towards Murata. The figure was clearly male stature wise, taller than Murata, blond haired, well built and with a beard. The man's face reminded Murata of someone from the Bielefeld family, from Waltrana's generation at least.

"Bravo! Seems like you caught me after all Geika.", the man said, clapping enthusiastically as he walked.

 _If the man knows who he is then the man's clearly not one of the humans._

"Who are you? Why are you here?", Murata questioned. He was on guard ever since the man walked towards him.

 _Damn it. Why was he alone down here again? There was no way he could protect himself against that man. Hopefully someone came looking for him. He needed backup, fast._

"You know who I am Geika. After all I was once head of the Bielefeld family and consort of the former Maoh.", the man explained, confirming Murata's suspicions.

Murata wasn't sure if the man told the truth but if he was, then things were going to go ugly fast. If the man really was Wismut von Bielefeld then Murata had a very big problem at his hands now. Wismut was known for his heavy mood swings and anger management problems. And for a moment Murata had to wonder what made Lady Cäcilie love and marry that kind of a male Mazoku.

"Wismut von Bielefeld? But you're supposed to be dead.", Murata had to ask, just to make sure.

"Surprised? Don't be boy. It was easy faking my death.", the man grinned maliciously.

"What do you want?", the Geika tried to stall for time in hopes someone would come and save him from this chaos. And hopefully not Wolfram. No one from the Bielefeld family was willing to talk about Wismut. Like there was a very dark secret concerning the former head of the Bielefelds ever since Wolfram's birth. Murata used to think nothing of that fact. He didn't even remember where he'd heard it from. Maybe Josak was at fault here. Maybe not.

Anyway, thinking back to the last days and the facts Murata had gathered about Wolfram in that time, there could only be one nasty truth about Wismut's and Wolfram's relationship. Murata had the hunch Wolfram was abused by his own father. All he needed to do now was to confirm it.

"I'm here to take back what belongs to me.", but Wismut already confirmed it for him.

"If you mean Lady Cäcilie, she's obviously not here.", Murata tried to joke. Or to do anything to stall time. Ignoring the banging sounds of the assaulter against the lattice bars and shouts to be let free.

"Don't be silly lad. I'm talking about my son."

Wismut simply stepped closer, making Murata step back. Murata turned his head to look over his shoulder briefly. Just a few more steps and he'd get to the stairway that lead back to the upper ground of Blood Pledge turned his head back to look at Wismut.

"What do you want from Wolfram?"

"None of your business buddy."

Murata was about to ask another question, when he heard the sound of footsteps coming from the stairs behind him. Both Wismut and Murata turned to see who it was. And Murata inwardly screamed when it was Wolfram who emerged from the stairway to the dungeon.

"What's going on here?", Wolfram asked, looking at Murata then glaring at the man.

"Hello Wolfram.", Wismut greeted calmly, smirking.

"Wolfram! Don't come near! Run!", Murata shouted out at the same time.

But it was already too late. Murata grimaced as he watched Wolfram's face change from curiosity, to anger, to recognition and finally to fear and disbelieve.

"Father? What? How are you alive? You're supposed to be dead."

* * *

Although the ball was in full swing, Gisela was far from having fun. She had walked through the whole ball room, but no matter where she went, she just couldn't find Wolfram. He'd had promised her a dance tonight. And Gisela really didn't want to dance with any other male, aside from Wolfram. She just didn't feel comfortable with the other sex anymore since being assaulted by that man. Wolfram was the only exception.

In her defence, Gunther didn't really count. Every girl dances with her father at the ball at least once. It was custom. A look at Greta dancing with Heika proofed that.

Anyway, back to finding Wolfram. Gisela was getting worried. It was unusual for Wolfram not to be near Heika. Usually the blonde Mazoku was always close to Heika at such big gatherings like this ball, always claiming he could do a better job at guarding the Maoh than the guards.

"Are you looking for someone, my dear?", a male voice asked from behind her.

Gisela abruptly turned around startled. To her relief it was just the Head of Bielefeld. Which was another unusual thing for that evening. Usually Wolfram's uncle wouldn't talk to her so casually. Uncle and nephew would normally be found together or in close vicinity of each other at a ball like this. To see Wolfram's uncle without Wolfram nearby worried Gisela even more.

"Yes, I'm looking for your nephew Lord von Bielefeld. Have you seen Wolfram anywhere, milord? He'd promised me a dance this evening.", Gisela replied, trying to sound casual rather than worried.

"No. Come to think of it, I haven't seen Wolfram since Heika asked him to look for Geika, Lady Gisela. It truly is worrisome if I think about it. Wolfram would never let Heika out of his sight for long."

It was the Lord of Bielefeld's turn to look worried and Gisela wrung her hands nervously. This was even worse .Gisela hadn't seen the black haired sage all evening. Same as Wolfram.

"That's what I think as well, milord. I'm worried something happened to Wolfram.", Gisela admitted.

She listened to Wolfram's uncle as he hummed in thought, before the older man said:

"Maybe we should talk to Conrad or Gwendal? They could know more than we do."

Gisela could've hit herself. _Why hadn't she thought of that?_

"Yes, we should."

"There is no need. I know where my little brother and Geika are. And I must inform Gwendal, Gunther and Heika immediately. I would appreciate it if you could help me look for those three without making a scene about what I'm going to show you now."

Both Gisela and Wolfram's uncle turned to see Conrad standing behind them. The brown haired man looked grim, like something awful had happened to both missing males. And when Conrad presented the bloodied piece of paper, filled with black ink Gisela wanted to cry.

"We found it in the dungeons, when we went looking for Wolfram. It was sticking against your assaulter, Lady Gisela. The douchebag of a man is dead by the way…And…", Conrad tried to explain, but Gisela couldn't listen as she read through the words in the note. Lord von Bielefeld gasped next to her before starting a tirade of nasty words. Gisela knew that he read it too. The words said:

 _To the current unqualified Maoh,_

 _Wolfram belongs to me. He is my son and as such he's my property. Try to find him if you dare. I will know if try though. I have more than one set of eyes and ears planted in the castle after all. Also I took the sage with me as well. Let's see how much a wise man can take pain compared to my offspring shall we? Just kidding. Not._

 _Best regards,_

 _Wismut von Bielefeld_


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

Who took which hand first, wasn't important right now. Why Murata and Wolfram were holding hands was something Murata shoved into the back of his mind. And if Murata enjoyed holding Wolfram's hand despite the bad situation the two were in, well, nobody needed to know.

The men cornering them at least didn't notice them holding hands or didn't care, so whatever. It's not his fault physical contact soothes his mind.

What mattered was that Murata held Wolfram's hand securely in his (Or was it the other way around?) while the two followed after Wismut. The emerald-eyed Mazoku next to the sage was shaking like a leaf, probably still in shock. Murata took a glance at Wolfram and grimaced. It wasn't shock, no, it was unadulterated loathing that made the blonde shake. Wolfram's gaze was focused on his father, a scowl plastered on his pretty face, but the blonde said nothing. It was weird that Wolfram hadn't spoken at all since they'd been captured. There really was no sight of the usual temper Wolfram displayed since Murata had known him and Murata wondered if the whole little lord brat thing was just a masquerade Wolfram came up with in self-defence.

Murata cursed at that. But he couldn't blame Wolfram. He'd feel and act the same way if he had been in Wolfram's shoes. And so he squeezed Wolfram's hand to reassure him he's not alone or holding onto dead weight.

The situation was a disaster since Wismut killed Gisela's assaulter right before their eyes and stuck that damn letter against the dead man's body. No it was a disaster the moment Wolfram appeared at the dungeon.

Really, the black-haired sage never imagined there'd be a secret door hidden in the dungeon, leading to a dark passageway. And he should've expected that Wismut hadn't come alone to retrieve his son. There were at least 15 men under Wismut's command. Ten had been there too surround Wolfram and Murata, five of those had been newly acquired guards like the one that assaulted Gisela. Another five were waiting with horses and whatnot at the end of this damn hidden tunnel.

Although Wolfram nor Murata had been tied up with anything (those idiots didn't even bother to take Wolfram's sword), the threat to murder the inhabitants of Blood Pledge Castle if they so much as attempted to escape, was enough to hold them prison. For now at least. It also sucks that the fake guards were behind them, whereas the other five were walking in front of Wismut with lanterns in their hands.

Finally they reached the end of the tunnel, which ended in a clearing somewhere in the woods. There Murata not only saw the other remaining men but also at least 10 single horses and a wooden carriage, big enough to carry six people. And with a glance around the sage really didn't recognise anything that could pinpoint where they were and if they were still in Shin Makoku.

"Geika?" Wolfram whispered.

"Yes?" Murata whispered back.

"I'll set the carriage on fire and then we'll run, got it?"

Murata could only hope that Wolfram's plan worked out in their favour. But it was better than to have no plan at all. They couldn't count on a rescue team since Yuuri and the others would most certainly discover their disappearance about now. Too late to reach them in time. And so he agreed.

"Alright. On the count of three then." Wolfram nodded and let go of Murata's hand. "One."

"Hey you! No whispering!" one of the fake guards shouted.

"Two." Wolfram continued to count and Murata readied himself to run as fast as he could.

"Let them be. It's not like they can escape us." another guy replied in their stead.

"Three!"

Whoosh. The carriage went aflame. And the two ran back to the tunnel.

But didn't get very far.

"Do you really think you can escape me so easily Wolfram?"

Wismut and his men had surrounded them with drawn swords, instead of being spooked by the fire.

"Of course not, father." Wolfram countered his father's question. "But it was worth a try."

Murata could only watch helplessly as Wolfram pulled out his own sword.

And chaos arose as swords clashed against sword.

* * *

Yuuri paced. Ever since Conrad showed him the damn letter. He couldn't stop pacing. Either that or he would dismiss the ball this instant and run after Conrad and Gwendal. He didn't care about royal etiquette. _Wolfram came first._ _And, well, Murata as well._

So Yuuri paced. And conversed with the other nobles. And paced again.

Until somebody grabbed him by the elbow. On both arms. Yuuri turned around as the hands on his elbow let him go, only to see Waltrana and to his surprise Gisela in front of him.

"We need to talk to you Heika." Gisela began, but Yuuri interrupted her instantly.

"Not now." The double black hissed. He wasn't in the mood for more small talk.

"It concerns Wolfram, Wismut and your decision about Wismut's fate, Heika. I do believe you should listen to us. Although I had promised Wolfram not to tell you, I see the need to break the promise since it's about my nephew's safety. But not here." Waltrana continued without missing a beat, fully ignoring Yuuri's dismissal to talk.

Yuuri perked up at that. Finally there was something he could do for his Wolf.

"Alright. Let's go to my office then." Yuuri agreed.

The young king called for Gunter to keep the guests entertained in Yuuris stead. And then the double black led the way to his office. Gisela and Waltrana followed.

* * *

Wolfram hissed in pain as a sword sliced through his jacket and graced his shoulder.

It was hard to keep up with 16 men, well-versed in sword fighting. At least Murata wasn't a complete dead weight. The sage was a pro at dodging attacks coming his way. And Murata even started to throw rocks at those men that he found on the ground.

Their only chance to flee now was to either get a hold on one of the horses that remained calm thorough this fight or wait out until a rescue team got to them. It was easier said than done.

"Wolfram behind you!" he heard the great sage shout from somewhere to his right. Wolfram dodged the upcoming attack by merely an inch.

"Hold!"

In the corner of his left eye Wolfram saw Wismut raise his hand in a gesture. Then the attacks from Wismut's men suddenly stopped. Wolfram warily turned to face his father. The hand holding his sword was aching, the cuts and bruises hurt. A glance at Murata showed that the sage was in an even worse shape than he was in. Muratas breathing was all over the place.

"Give up son. This fight is fruitless. You won't win against all of us." Wismut sneered.

"And if I don't?" Wolfram questioned breathlessly.

He knew he won't last much longer against so many swordfighters. But he had to try.

"Then your friend will be a head shorter." Wismut smirked as two of his men easily grabbed Murata and a third one held his sword against the sage's throat.

Wolfram gritted his teeth. This didn't look good.

* * *

Gisela fidgeted under Yuuri's serious gaze once they reached the Maoh's office.

"Continue." The words were said in a harsh tone. Gisela flinched, Waltrana snorted in disapproval.

"I'm sorry. That was mean." Heika sighed before he continued softly: "I'm just worried about Wolf."

"That's alright. We are all worried Heika." Waltrana replied. And Yuuri sighed before he took a seat on his table. He mentioned for the other two to take a seat as well. Waltrana sat down on one stool and Gisela followed his example.

"I know. So please continue with what you want to tell me." The Maoh now said in a gentler tone.

Gisela heard Waltrana hum in agreement from his seat next to her, while she herself felt anxious about telling their Heika about Wolfram's devastating past.

"I assume you know what happened to Gisela?" Waltrana questioned.

"Yeah I know. But what does this have to do my fiancé?" Yuuri asked in return.

Gisela waited with bated breath for Yuuri's reaction to what Waltrana had to say next.

"The same happened to my dear nephew, Heika. More than you can count."

Yuuri stared at them, mouth agape. She could see the gears turn in his head. Gisela inwardly counted down to three, waiting for the outburst she knew was coming soon.

And sure enough their Maoh shouted in disbelieve: "What!?"

"It's true. Wolfram told me so himself. And I believe my nephew in telling the truth. You know Wolfram would never lie about something this severe. It's not in his nature."

Waltrana looked from their Heika, who still looked conflicted and disbelieving, to Gisela. And Gisela knew that she had to voice her own opinion on that matter for Yuuri to understand that Wolfram, though he kept his past a secret, never lied about it. The young Bielefeld told her everything once she had asked him herself after all.

Heika too looked at her now. And Gisela found herself hesitating for just a blink.

 _She had to do this, she had to tell Yuuri about Wolfram's past. It was her responsibility as his friend._

And so Gisela took a deep breath, before she clearly stated:

"It's true Heika. Wolfram told me as well."

"Who did it?" Yuuri growled out, hands clenched into fists.

"As I know you've read the letter, you know who." was all Waltrana said to that.

Gisela watched as confusion took hold of Yuuri's face, then realisation and then she saw the anger rise in their Maoh.

 _Looks like he connected the dots._

"I can't believe this!" Yuuri shouted in aggregation, slamming his fists onto the surface of the desk.

Gisela flinched. A glance at Waltrana showed the older man just looked at Yuuri disapprovingly.

Then there was silence as the hit from their Heika echoed in the closed office. Gisela understood why Yuuri was so agitated. She herself would have had a hard time believing someone so strong like Wolfram had went through such cruel actions had it not been for her own experience.

Gisela believed in the saying: ' _One victim's heart speaks to another victim's heart clear as day._ ' Her heart had heard Wolframs loud and clear from the moment he saved her. She always listened to her heart and she saw the deep trauma in the little ways Wolfram held himself once she actually looked for the signs. And when Wolfram finally told her she believed him from the get go.

She heard Yuuri sigh and watched their Heika run his hand through his black hair.

"I'm sorry. I believe Wolfram, I really do. But why had he never said anything to me?" Yuuri asked once he had calmed down.

 _Because he never asked Wolfram about his past. Heika never cared enough._

"Because you never cared to ask about his past Heika." came Waltrana's harsh reply, which took the words right out of Gisela's mind.

And it was Yuuri's turn to flinch.

* * *

Murata prayed in his mind to any deity he knew that anyone would rescue them. Anyone. Wolfram looked like he was about to surrender to this maniac he called father. And Murata couldn't have that. It would mean Wolfram would surrender to his past as well if he surrendered to his rapist now.

"Don't listen to him Wolfram!" Shouting was the only thing Murata could do to buy some time.

 _Please! Somebody come and save them from those bastards. Yuuri. Conrad. Gwendal. Anyone._

"Silence you fool! Men teach him some manners will you!" Wismut growled. Murata clenched his teeth in pain as one of the men holding him hostage, stepped hard onto his foot.

"Alright, I get it father. Just please let Geika go. And I'll surrender." Wolfram tried to compromise.

 _Please don't do this Wolfram!_

"Very well, son. Sheath you sword and your precious Geika will be free to go back to the castle." Wismut replied with a smirk and a grand hand gesture.

Murata cursed inwardly as Wolfram sheathed his sword. The men holding him let go and the sword near his throat vanished. At least now Murata knew that Wismut was true to his word. For now.

"Go. Go. GO!" Murata heard Wolfram shout at him. But he sage didn't know what to do. He had both the urge to run like Wolfram ordered him to and to stay with Wolfram even if it meant he ended up a head shorter. And so he hesitated with his eyes glued to Wolfram.

"That won't be necessary." A knew voice announced from somewhere behind Wismut. And both Murata and Wolfram turned to see Josak holding a dagger against Wimut's throat while holding him tight.

"Josak!"

"Wolfram! Geika!" Murata heard Conrad' voice shout, followed by Gwendal's harsh order:

"Men! Capture them!"

Suddenly soldiers from the Blood Pledge Castle were everywhere. And Murata sighed in relieve.

 _They were safe now._


End file.
